Auto Framing Walls

[Anonymous]

Alright, for class, our teacher wants us to frame the house we built. If you go to design>Design Extras>Roof/Trusses it automatically frames your roof. Is there a way to do that for your walls? If so how?


Thanks for your help in advance.

[Karl Ottenstein]

Yes. You'll have only moderate control over stud placement and header sizes, but use the Wall Accessory add-on for a free solution. (CADImage has a for-purchase framing solution that is better, but for your class, and student budget, the free add-on is probably fine.)

With AC running, go to Help > ArchiCAD 15 Downloads

Scroll down the Goodies to download the Accessories for your platform. Exit ArchiCAD; install the Accessories add-on and restart ArchiCAD.

In Library Manager, click Add and navigate to your ArchiCAD 15 program/application folder and load the subfolder called "Accessories Library 15".

Now, SELECT all of the walls that you want framed and from the menus go to:
Design > Design Extras > Accessories > Wall Accessories...

Select "Wall Framing 15" and set up the parameters for the desired stud size, header, fire bllocking, etc. Be sure to make the layer a unique layer DIFFERENT from the layer the wall is in - so that you can later turn the walls off and see just the framing.

(There are lots of params to explore. Under the '2D Representation' page, a new setting is to 'Show Framing Elevation on Plan' - which lets you see the framing in plan as if the wall framing were laying on the ground - and let you edit the hotspots for elements there.)

Click OK.

You'll have an eyeball cursor back in plan - click some place beyond the outside face of a wall. The framing will appear.

Note that this is a dynamic accessory: if you place or move a window or door in the 'parent' wall, the framing and header will automatically adjust.

There are glitches and limited control, which is why this is not a supported part of the product.

Have fun,
Karl

[Anonymous]

Awesome, Karl

I can see us using this. I have a pet hate of individual studs which have been pasted all over the walls to make it look like studwork - and then having to nudge them hither and thither later.

Just one question: I couldn't find a parameter which would allow the studs to be offset from the reference line - in other words, is it possible to use this routine with a composite wall?

[Karl Ottenstein]

Keith wrote:
Just one question: I couldn't find a parameter which would allow the studs to be offset from the reference line - in other words, is it possible to use this routine with a composite wall?

I can't see a parameter to allow for offsetting the studs either. 😞

I tried offsetting the reference line, and showing 'core only' (desperate attempt there)... in all cases, the accessory aligns the stud face to the face of the composite wall. A shame, as this limits the accessory's usefulness.

Any tricks I can think of are unreasonable except perhaps at CD stage: if the reference line is properly offset to the core, duplicate all walls into a new layer, replace their composite fill with a simple one representing just the core (aligned on the reference line), then apply the accessory. The duplicates will contain all windows/doors, and so the stud framing will show the proper openings. Turn off the fake/duplicate wall layer. A pain, and of course requires coordinating changes to the real walls with the fake walls if there are last minute changes.

Maybe somebody else sees something that we're missing...

Cheers,
Karl

[Anonymous]

That's a pity. I guess if we're serious we'll just have to go for the CADImage product.

Thanks, Karl.

[Anonymous]

Keith wrote:
That's a pity. I guess if we're serious we'll just have to go for the CADImage product.

Thanks, Karl.

hi, my names is jacob,
ive just signed up for these forums, and already found them really helpful, thanks, but ive just got that cad image product but are having major issues trying to attach composites to the frame tool, any suggestions?? i dont know if running both educational version of archicad and cadimage will make a difference??

[Anonymous]

Hi there,

I have just started working on a small Privte Job which I intend on using the wall framing part. I too have come across the wall which will not centre itself in a composite wall.

It is actually quite easy to open the object and put a small adjustment in the 3D script which will allow you to add a finish thickness. This will then always move the framing in the nominated thickness. I have just done this by adding a variable with a default of 13mm (standard PB thickness)

First you must place the object in plan.Then select the object and hit 'ctrl+Shift+O'. This opens the object. A dialogue box will then open and you will see on the left the parameters tab is automatically opened. Now select "new" in the top tab. This creates a new parametric function at the bottom of the list. In this new function – under the Variable column put "F" and in the Name put "Finish Thickness".
Make sure the type is on “length” and add 13 into the Value (default value – I have set to 13mm Plasterboard or Drywall for my American friends!)
Then, drag this new function up (using the updown arrows on the left of the list) to above the "wall_type" function (near the top). This has now ordered the function at the top of the list. This function will appear in the object interface later…

Now on the tabs to the left of the object editing box select the ‘3D’ script. Select all the top text above where it says “ !! Hotspot editing !! and paste the following:

material frame_mat
pen gs_cont_pen

if ac_refSide then
addy stud_w/2+F
else
addy -stud_w/2-F
endif

This has now put your finish thickness into the location script of the object.
Now all is left to save. Just hit the red X on the top right and save changes to object. This will create a copy of the original object. Call it something you will recognize. Make sure it is saved in your library where you can find it!

Wala…. Problem solved. Now when you add the framing to your wall, just click on the Plasterboard side, and the default value will automatically move the framing in. If you need to modify the value, open the object and it will appear in the parameters list at the top.

Hope this helps a few people out.!

Cheers,
Mick.

[Anonymous]

Apologies all, I just left out a final step.

Whilst you have the object editing box open (ie 'ctrl+shift+O') go into the 2D script and look for the 5th line of text which reads "add2 0,-stud_w/2"


Now add -F at the end of that text. so that it now reads -

"add2 0,-stud_w/2-F"


This will add your finish thickness to the plan symbol.

Thats it. Fixed!!

[Karl Ottenstein]

Thanks for posting, Mick! I just forwarded this to tech support to be sure that they noticed your easy solution to consider including in an update at some point.

It would be nice if the accessory could 'read' the skin information for the host wall, but that would require an API/add-on update. (GDL objects that are associated with walls - such as windows, doors and lables - have access to all skin data, including thicknesses - but the association between the framing object and the host wall is managed by the accessory add-on, so that makes things more complicated.)

Yours is a simple solution to make this wall framing accessory much more usable / useful to so many folks.

Thanks again,
Karl

[Anonymous]

Is there a quick way to input windows and door using the wall accessory tool? If this has been posted already please refer me there... Thanks David